The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development along with the Agricultural Preservation Fund Board are pleased to announce the FY 2023 grant funding application cycle for the Michigan Agricultural Preservation Fund.
Donor: Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development
State: Michigan
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 12/26/2022
Size of the Grant: up to $250,000
Details:
Fund Purpose
- To provide grants to eligible local units of government for the purchase of agricultural conservation easements through Purchase of Development Rights programs (PDRs) to preserve farmland.
- To provide funds for the state Purchase of Development Rights Program if a fund balance of greater than $5 million remains after making grants to local units of government and providing for administrative costs.
Approximately $2 million grant dollars are available to be awarded to assist local farmland preservation programs in purchasing development rights to preserve locally important farmland. Again this year, up to $250,000 will be set aside for a new program to be awarded funds to close on a property/farm. A new program is defined as a program with three or less agricultural easements that were completed through the Local Grants Program and/or the Federal Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP-ALE).
Criteria
Prior to applying for a grant, the local unit of government (county or township) must be qualified to be eligible to make a grant application. To qualify, the local unit of government must meet the following minimum standards:
The local unit of government has adopted a Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) Ordinance that is consistent with NREPA, the Michigan Zoning Enabling Act and the policies established by the Board. The ordinance must contain all the items outlined in the Michigan Zoning Enabling Act, including:
- A method to determine the value of the development rights.
- An application procedure.
- A scoring system (may be assigned to local board to develop).
The local unit of government has adopted a comprehensive land use plan that includes a plan for agricultural preservation. The local unit of government can be covered within a regional plan. The plans must be prepared within the last 10 years and reviewed or updated within the last 5 years. The comprehensive land use plan must contain an agricultural preservation component, consisting of:
- The areas intended for agricultural preservation are clearly depicted on the future land use map.
- description of how and why the preservation area was selected.
- Goals for farmland preservation.
- Language indicating why farmland should be preserved in the community (cost of services studies, economic benefit to the community, etc.)
- Text describing the strategies intended to be used in order to preserve the agricultural land, including Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) but should include other techniques.
- A monitoring and enforcement plan for the farmland conservation easements has been established.
For more information, visit Agriculture Preservation Fund Grants.
